Our Mission
The Indian Arts and Crafts Board (IACB), U.S. Department of the Interior, was created by Congress to promote the economic development of federally recognized* American Indians and Alaska Natives (Indians) through the expansion of the Indian arts and crafts market. The IACB provides promotional opportunities, general business advice, and information on the Indian Arts and Crafts Act (Act) to Indian artists, craftspeople, and cultural organizations of federally recognized tribes. Additionally, the IACB operates three regional museums in the Plains Region, conducts a promotional museum exhibition program, produces a Source Directory of American Indian and Alaska Native Owned and Operated Arts and Crafts Businesses, and oversees the implementation of the Act.
* The IACB provides services, including Source Directory listings, to enrolled members of entities on the list published by the Bureau of Indian Affairs under the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994, 25 U.S.C. § 5130. Consistent with other statutes defining this Department's responsibilities and obligations to Indian tribes, the Department interprets the first definition of Indian tribe in the Indian Arts and Crafts Act as those tribes listed on the tribal entities list published in the Federal Register.